Formatting
and Submitting Your Doctoral Dissertation or Master's Thesis
Quick
LInks: |
Formatting Check:
- Email a PDF or bring a printed copy to Shari Hill at 502 Main Building.
Formal Submission:
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The Graduate School's formatting editor both assists students in making sure their document's formatting meets the requirements of the Graduate School, and accepts the formal submissions once the dissertation or thesis is complete. The basic process is outlined below.
1. Pre-Submission Requirements
Graduate School requirements for the appointment of a research
director, topic approval, the formation of a review committee,
and more are available in the Bulletin of Information.
If you do not have access to the Bulletin of Information,
please check the policies section of this web site to review
the Graduate School requirements for completion of a doctoral
dissertation or a master's
thesis (D/T).
2. Preparation of a Dissertation or Thesis File
Dissertations and theses must comply with ProQuest Information and Learning's formatting requirements. Before you begin typesetting your document, please download and read the PQIL (UMI) requirements for formatting doctoral dissertations and master's theses.
We also encourage students to refer to the Notre Dame Graduate School's Guide
for Formatting and Submitting Doctoral Dissertations and Master's
Theses. Our formatting and layout guidelines are primarily
the same for both the doctoral dissertation and the master's
thesis, and were adapted from the Chicago Manual of Style and Kate Turabian's Manual for Writers of Term Papers,
Theses, and Dissertations. These guidelines were developed to provide a template for a professional and easy-to-read layout across disciplines at Notre Dame.
To make the formatting as painless as possible, we have
a Microsoft Word template and two versions of a LaTeX class
file available for download:
MS Word
We have been working with the OIT Training Office to develop and support a formatting class for Microsoft Word users who want to know more about formatting for a dissertation. W4250i "Word 2003: Preparing Your Dissertation" is a free workshop open to Notre Dame students, staff, and faculty. For more information, or to download the course handout, visit the OIT Training documentation page and click on the course name.
LaTeX
- ndthesis [directory of files; revised by former students S. Borman and
J. Squyres]
- nddiss2e [directory of files; revised by former student S. Vijay]
- nddiss2e_example [a sample dissertation using Dr. Vijay's class file]
A formatting workshop, "W4250(i), Word 2003: Preparing Your Dissertation," is now available for MS Word users, courtesy of the Graduate School and the OIT Training Office. Unfortunately, we are not yet able to provide support for LaTeX users.
3. The Formatting Check
The D/T editor and her assistant are available to review
manuscript formatting until the formatting check deadline,
usually set approximately three weeks before the formal submission
deadline for the current
academic term. Manuscripts may be submitted for their
review in either PDF or paper format for this preliminary
deadline, and do not need the original signature of your research
director.
To submit a document for a formatting check, please email one PDF to shill2@nd.edu, or deliver one printed manuscript to: Shari Hill, c/o The Graduate School, 502 Main Building. It is important to include contact information on the title page of any printed formatting check. Do NOT upload your formatting check to the electronic thesis and dissertation website; we'll think it's a formal submission, and may wait until after the submission deadline to look at it.
Upon completion of your formatting check, the D/T editor
or her assistant will contact you via e-mail to let you know
they are finished with your document. It is important
to make sure you check your Notre Dame e-mail account unless
you have specified another account for contact. The notification
e-mail will also contain the submission forms and instructions
necessary for your document type. If you should lose these
forms, please contact the D/T
editor or download new copies of the PDF forms from the
current students' forms
page.
After the formatting check deadline, we cannot guarantee
you will receive comments and required changes in time to
meet the formal submission deadline, so please have your layout
checked as early as possible.
4. Formal Submission of Your Manuscript
All formal submissions must be completed by 5 P.M. on the
date of the submission deadline regardless of the submission
method. This means that the Graduate School should be in possession
of your printed manuscripts or PDF, signed title page(s),
payment, and forms by the end of the day.
If your formatting is not acceptable by 5 P.M. on this date,
or if you are missing your forms or payment by the end of
the day, the Graduate School has the right to refuse your
submission and remove you from the graduation list for that
academic term.
Submission Methods: Electronic or Paper
Electronic submission is the method preferred
by the Graduate School. To submit an electronic manuscript,
convert your complete document to PDF and upload the file
to the library's Electronic Thesis and Dissertation (ETD)
web site: http://etd.nd.edu.
Do not include a scanned signature on the title page of your PDF or the printed title page and abstract that would accompany a microfilming form. We do require two printed title pages with your director's original
signature to be submitted to the Graduate School with any other forms and
payment due.
Please test your PDF on more than one computer platform
before you submit your file. If graphics or fonts are not
embedded correctly in your PDF, your text may appear fuzzy
and illegible when we review your file, or your graphic
resolution may be poor. In either case, we will require
a replacement file.
Paper submissions should be printed single-sided
on white, acid-free paper of at least 20# weight. We require
two printed manuscripts, each including your director's
original signature on the title page.
Submission Requirements: Dissertation or Thesis
To complete the submission of a doctoral dissertation,
you should also submit the following items to the Graduate
School by the deadline date: a receipt for the microfilmign fee payment, your signed title page(s), the
doctoral placement form, the Survey of Earned Doctorates,
and the UMI/ProQuest Doctoral Dissertation Agreement Form.
If you are submitting a master's thesis,
you will need to submit a receipt for the submission fee, your signed title page(s), and
the master's placement form.
Submitting a Formal Dissertation or Thesis Payment
All students beginning a formal dissertation or thesis submission should pay their formal submission fees through the online payment center. Please be advised this system is to be used for the formal submission only. Attempting to order extra copies through this website will result in a delay in your submission processing.
After you have completed your order and arranged for payment, complete and submit the appropriate forms found on the student forms page. The dissertation and thesis checklist PDFs can be found on the same page, and give brief instructions for the submission process.
5. Ordering Personal Copies of Your Dissertation or Thesis
The Graduate School is no longer able
to offer binding and shipping for personal D/T copies. This
includes any manuscript you wish to have bound into book format
for yourself, your friends and family, your adviser, or your
department. Only formal submission copies will be accepted
for binding through our office.
As a courtesy to our students, we have put together a brief PDF (Personal Copies: Using Library Bindings as a Guide) you can reference as a guide when you are speaking with a bindery. The three-page PDF includes a spine mock-up, the placement and origin of the text included on the spine, a list of formal degrees awarded and their abbreviations, and a brief list of binderies that are willing to work directly with students on theses and dissertations.
6. The D/T Editor
If you have questions regarding the formatting or submission
of your D/T, please contact the Graduate School's formatting
editor:
Shari Hill
502 Main Building
Notre Dame, IN 46556
Phone: (574) 631-7545
E-mail: shill2@nd.edu
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